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Samsung Bixby voice assistant pegged for 18th July launch

Bixby, Samsung’s long–delayed voice assistant, looks set to launch next week, after an internal memo detailing the company’s plans was leaked to Reddit.

A screen grab shows an email, apparently sent internally at Samsung, stating that the "long-awaited Bixby Voice launches Tuesday 7/18/. Below are a few tasks to ensure we are retail ready."

While the rest of the email is not shown, this appears to be the clearest indicator yet that Samsung has surmounted the issues which prevented it from fully launching Bixby alongside its Galaxy S8 earlier this year.

That device has a dedicated button for accessing the voice assistant. However, problems with getting the service to properly understand the English language has held back its release.

Samsung has confidently predicted that Bixby will put the likes of Apple’s Siri and Google’s Assistant in the shade.

Bixby has been developed by Viv Labs, the same people behind the original Siri, and is capable of more context-aware conversations compared with its rivals, as well as the ability to continue to chat without always requiring a so–called ‘wake word’.

The potential launch means Samsung could have Bixby fully ready for the unveiling of its Galaxy Note 8, which is expected to be revealed in early September at the IFA trade show in Berlin.

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